


Drops of Lavender

by Well_Then_Extract



Category: Be More Chill - Iconis/Tracz
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-09
Updated: 2017-06-16
Packaged: 2018-11-12 01:54:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11151756
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Well_Then_Extract/pseuds/Well_Then_Extract
Summary: What in the hell was wrong with her? Why did Brooke suddenly have this much of an effect on Chloe?(Aka Chloe realizes her feelings for Brooke might be the end of her, and of the friendship she's clung to for ten years)





	1. Drove Me Wild

**Author's Note:**

> Look who's back! I told you all I'm not done with this fandom yet. I have another boyf riends fic halfway written, but since I finished this fanfic (part one) yesterday, I decided I'd post it today. I love these girls so freakin' much you guys ;-;  
> Oh! And this entire work is a huge mess of moments from the past and moments in the present, sorry if it's confusing.  
> Okay, go read now!

“Bang!”

Chloe Valentine looked up from her Polly Pockets, looking at the source of the voice. There was a girl around her age with glittery blonde pigtails and wearing jeans and a shirt with a dog on it. There was a grin and chocolate on her face, and she was wearing too much lip gloss, but that made her smell like strawberries. She was wearing beat up Dora sneakers, with the laces untied, and had on two different socks. She had her dirty fingers pointed into a gun, and was aiming it right between Chloe’s eyes.

“What?” Chloe asked, brushing gravel off on her blue dress.

“I just shot you!” the girl replied, practically leaping in happiness.

“No you didn’t, I would have noticed” Chloe replied coldly, never one for talking to other children.

While everyone else was running around playing sharks and minnows, Chloe wandered away to play with her Polly Pockets and pick dandelions.

“I'll tell you a secret,” the girl said, leaning closer to Chloe.

Chloe wrinkled her nose. She didn’t even know this girl’s name, it was a little soon to be sharing secrets. Chloe leaned in too, just to make sure this secret stayed safe. A whiff of strawberry hit her, mixed slightly with the smell of flowers.

“You can be on my team, and we can pretend I didn’t just shoot you, ‘kay?” the girl held a hand over one side of her mouth like it would prevent others from seeing what she said.

“Um, what team is that?”

“The cool team!” the girl’s grin widened, revealing three missing teeth on the top side of her mouth. “You can get your own gun and everything!!”

Chloe took a look at her Polly Pockets, then back to the strange girl who had her dirt covered hand held out for Chloe to take. The girl had chipped sky blue nail polish, and a fainted ‘last lunch’ stamp on the back of her wrist, signaling she needed to bring in more money for school lunches.

“Alright, I’ll join your team” Chloe agreed, carefully taking the girl’s hand on her own.

“Cool! What’s your name? I’m Brooke!”

Chloe smiled.

Brooke.

She liked that name.

“I’m Chloe, but you can call me ‘Chlo’”

Brooke giggled, and nodded, her pigtails shaking.

“Okay, Chlo! Now, see those guys over there? We gotta get ‘em because they stole Beth’s book, and Beth is nice. So now we gotta get it back for her” Brooke explained, pointing out children as she went.

Chloe took mental notes, soaking all the information up.

“Ready?” Brooke asked finger gun poised, ready to fake shoot the boys. Chloe nodded, her own clean hands forming into a fake gun.

“Ready” she answered, a smile growing on her face.

Brooke grabbed Chloe’s hand, each girls shifting to a one handed finger gun. Then with a battle cry that sounded like a baby bird, Brooke lead Chloe into the faux battle.

* * *

 

“What is that supposed to be?” Chloe asked with a wrinkled nose as she sat next to Brooke at the school cafeteria.

“Um, I think it _was_ a salad” Brooke sighed, and poked at a wilted leaf from an unidentified plant.

“Since when do you get salads?” Chloe sat down next to Brooke, eying the pile of leaves.

“I figured I should lose some weight” Brooke shrugged.

Chloe wrinkled her nose again, frowning. Brooke was one of those people who could eat what she wanted and not gain too much weight. She had a great metabolism and exercised regularly. If anyone needed to lose weight it was Chloe. Brooke was perfect in every way, she didn’t need a diet. Chloe, however, had to work for how she looked. She had to exercise frequently and had to watch for calories and went on multiple diets. No one thought she needed to lose weight except herself, but how can she be sure they weren’t lying?

“You don’t need to lose weight, if anything you should gain weight” Chloe brought out her own lunch, and gave half of her sandwich to Brooke.

“Thanks, Chlo” Brooke took the sandwich, and immediately started eating it.

“You’re welcome” Chloe frowned down at her food.

Why did Brooke care about her weight all of the sudden? Nothing really had happened. Well, except for the Squip incident, but no one seemed all that affected by it.

Except for Chloe.

Chloe had been spending hours awake at night, listening. She stayed quiet, keeping her thoughts down, waiting for a voice to tell her the truth. That she was fat and pathetic and she couldn’t even go a day without seeing Brooke. All of it was true.

“Hey Brooke, why did you suddenly decide to go on a diet?”

Brooke jumped, before turning back to Chloe. “I um, well, I think I should lose weight”

Chloe caught on to what was happening.

“Who called you fat?”

“I- um, what?”

“Who called you fat?” Brooke looked down, eyes glossing over.

“Well, um, you remember the Squip?”

“Of course”

“It told me I was fat, and clingy, among other things”

Chloe scooted over to the smaller girl, wrapping her arms around her.

“Brooke… You’re not fat, you’re not clingy”

“I know but, sometimes, I still hear it. Telling me not to eat, to distance myself from you, to do all these things” Brooke had started crying, her tears dripping onto Chloe’s shoulder.

Chloe rubbed Brooke’s back, trying to calm her down.

It was getting harder, keeping her feelings in check. Chloe, strong, independent, take-no-shit Chloe was being tormented by the ghost of a supercomputer.That was kind of pathetic.

“Shh, it’s okay” she whispered to Brooke, as the girl continued to cry into Chloe’s shoulder. The two girls sat there, in the middle of the cafeteria, as one unit. One miserable unit. But they had each other, and that somehow made things better.

Soon enough the tears had stopped and Brooke was back to her normal happy self, which was a huge relief for Chloe.

“So, do you want my chips too?”

Brooke nodded, reaching into the bag.

They dove into their regular conversation, discussing Rich’s latest terrible bisexual pun shirt (today’s addition: a white shirt that read “Ain’t no lie baby” in black font, then in bisexual colors "Bi bi bi”, which Jake thought was hilarious, but to be fair, Jake thinks everything Rich does is the greatest thing ever).

“I mean, I love Rich and all, but he needs better clothes,” Chloe said, glancing over at the said student, who was standing on a table and yelling about something.

“Where does he get those shirts anyway? And am I the only one who finds it crazy how fast he found all those shirts?”

“Maybe there’s some bisexual shirt store something”

“Best Bi” Brooke said, grinning. 

Chloe burst out laughing, Brooke soon joining her.

“Best bi!” Chloe yelled between laughter, grabbing Brooke’s shoulder. Brooke was laughing too, mainly just proud she made Chloe laugh so hard. If it was anyone else, Chloe would have just snorted and rolled her eyes, but the way Brooke said it made the pun so much funnier. That and Brooke was laughing, which made Chloe laugh every time, and vice versa until the two were both a giggling mess.

Like they were now.

Good.

Chloe always hated seeing Brooke sad.

It was kind of scary, how fragile everyone was after the previous Squip related events. Some people were fine or were just good at hiding it, others broke down in the middle of the day. Even Michael, who as far as Chloe knew wasn’t squipped, still had some off days. Chloe really only knew herself, and she was good at hiding her doubts. Because if she didn’t she was certain people would attack her for them.

And Brooke.

Chloe knew Brooke like she knew herself, and Brooke couldn’t hide her feelings as well as Chloe could, so it was Chloe’s job to metaphorically tear apart anyone who would dare hurt Brooke.

And yes, that included Chloe herself.

* * *

 

Chloe was in fifth grade, and here she sat, in the principal’s office, arms folded and a glare on her face.

“Why?”

She had gotten into a fight with another girl, and the other girl ended up face-down on the pavement, whimpering and crying. Her name was Stephanie, and she wore dresses and high heels every day, and she wore makeup. Therefore, she was better than everyone else, right? Chloe not only put Stephanie in her place but defended Brooke. Stephanie made it a point to mock and make fun of Brooke, for whatever reason. She picks out everything, from Brooke’s hair to the fact that Brooke still has stuffed animals, to Brooke’s mom. Today, unlike most days, Brooke started crying in the middle of the bullying. Most days Brooke cried herself to sleep or hid in the girl's bathroom to cry while Chloe waited worriedly outside the stall. Today Brooke had just had enough. The tears also become a subject for Stephanie to attack, and she did just that. It had started with Brooke’s scuffed up shoes, then to her hair, then to her intelligence (or according to Stephanie, the lack of). It turned into a slaughter of everything Brooke was, and could ever be. Chloe had also just had enough. It was a blur, really. One second Chloe was watching everything happening, fists clenched and glaring, then she was tugging Stephanie’s stupid pink strips of hair with her foot on Stephanie’s back. Chloe had always hated Stephanie. Not only was she mean to Brooke, Stephanie was an arrogant brat who was mean to everyone and had no morals. No one would dare mess with Brooke now, not after watching Chloe beat up the most popular girl in their grade.

Chloe looked up at the principal, who was waiting for an answer.

Chloe swallowed. “She was hurting Brooke. Brooke was crying” Chloe said simply, moving her gaze to her hands in her lap.

Both her parents turned to her, her mother narrowing her eyes.

“I see” The principal was silent for a moment, then spoke again.

“Chloe, fighting other children is wrong, even if it’s to defend someone”

“I know but… I had to do something” Chloe whispered, consequences for her actions filling her head.

“Given that you were defending Miss Lohst, your suspension will only be three days”

_Only?_

“Thank you, sir” Chloe’s father swooped in before Chloe could say anything.

“Is there anything we should do as well?” her mother added.

“Maybe trying to show her that violence is not an okay method to solve her problems” The principal stood up, the Valentine parents following. “But other than that, nothing really”

“Okay, thank you, sir. Chloe, come on” Mrs. Valentine grabbed Chloe’s hand and lead her out of the office.

On the way to the car, Chloe saw Stephanie crying in the nurse’s office. Her face had cuts all over it, pieces of gravel still clinging to some. She saw Chloe walking and glared the best she could, but the fear in her eyes shone brighter than the anger.

Chloe skipped out the front doors.

That night Brooke came over, and the first thing she did when she saw Chloe was hug her. Brooke kept repeating “thank you” over and over, and Chloe just shook her head. They went about normal sleepover routine after that, but Chloe would never forget that moment.

The fight was worth it.

* * *

 

Chloe and Brooke were sitting in Chloe’s bed, sharing a Dr. Pepper and eating strawberry ice cream from the carton while watching Sixteen Candles. It was a tradition ever since middle school, a sacred action that calmed both girls. Except this time, it only set Chloe more on edge. There was something wrong with her. That had to be it. Weird things had been going on with her, all of which revolved around Brooke. Their hands would brush and Chloe’s heart would skip a beat. Chloe had decided that Brooke’s laugh was the best sound in the world (which she had already known since she first heard it, but rediscovering that was nice). Chloe had gotten even more protective, and for whatever reason couldn’t stop staring at Brooke. It always confused her how Brooke was self-conscious. Brooke was gorgeous and smart, and the sweetest person ever. She was better in every way than everyone Chloe had ever met. It made Chloe upset sometimes, and sometimes she’d take that out on others. That was her main issue, the projection. She’d lash out at other people whenever her emotions became too much for her. She scared everyone, always has. Even her own parents. Except for Brooke. Broke never left Chloe, even when Chloe would snap and yell at her when she’d break down in tears, when Chloe would deliberately ignore Brooke because she just didn’t feel like talking to anyone. But each time, Brooke would come skipping back to Chloe’s side. Chloe was more and more grateful each time she came back.

“That kid reminds me of Jeremy,” Brooke said, breaking the comfortable silence by pointing to the blonde kid currently trying to win over the protagonist.

“Yeah, yeah actually. I mean they don’t look alike and Jeremy has more homosexual leanings but… Yeah” Chloe nodded, scooping the strawberry sweetness of the ice cream into her mouth.

Brooke chuckled. “Ha, homosexual leanings”

Chloe laughed lightly. “Hey! You can’t tell me he isn’t totally in love with Michael. He just doesn’t know it yet”

“I never said Jeremy wasn’t in love with Michael. I think we should help him out, Christine mentioned something about it to me today” Brooke defended, eyes still on the screen.

Chloe hummed, glancing down at Brooke, who was currently leaning on Chloe’s shoulder. “About what?”

“About helping Jeremy”

“Hm, I’m in. If I’m invited, I mean” Brooke looked up to catch Chloe’s eye.

“Of course you’re invited! You’re the best connection to Michael we have between us, Jenna, and Christine”

Chloe’s face fell, and she looked away. Of course, it was just for her odd friendship with Michael. How stupid she was for believing people actually wanted to hang out with her.

“Oh! No that’s not what I meant. I mean we also really want you to be a part of this. Well, I know I do” Brooke assured, squeezing Chloe’s arm.

The simple action from Brooke made heat rush to Chloe’s face, and sparks to go through her entire body.

“Oh… Well, um, thank you” Chloe smiled at Brooke, although she wanted nothing more than to flee the room and find out what the hell is wrong with her. But she stayed where she was because the feeling of Brooke’s head on her shoulder was amazing. The heat of being pressed this close to her, arms against arms, snug under the covers.

“You’re welcome”

They went quiet and watched as the blonde boy tried awkwardly once more to gain the affection of the main girl, only to fail again.

“Holy crap it really is Jeremy!” Chloe exclaimed, laughing.

“Right? Just replace Samantha with Michael and it’s perfect”

“Well, no, because they don’t get together in the end, but that kid is really a lot like Jeremy” Chloe admitted, her laughter slowing down.

“I guess that’s true” Brooke admitted, giving a final giggle before going quiet again.

Brooke sighed contently, and snuggled closer to Chloe, wedging her head further into the crook of Chloe’s neck. Chloe felt a stream of heat pour over her, focusing particularly on her cheeks. She was incredibly thankful that Brooke was so focused on the movie, or else she would have been completely and utterly screwed.

What in the hell was wrong with her? Why did Brooke suddenly have this much of an effect on Chloe?

But, was it really all that sudden?

Chloe knew she was bisexual. She wasn’t as proud of it as Rich was per se (Rich was a one-man bi pride parade), but she knew her sexuality. But with that said, did she really like Brooke?

Chloe took a cautious look down at Brooke, who was still nestled on her shoulder. Her hair was glistening in the light from the TV, strands spread all over, swirling around both girls’ shoulders. Her eyes were focused on the movie, soft and slightly unfocused. Her lips pulled up in a small smile, shining with strawberry lip gloss. Brooke’s cheeks were a calm pink color, as they always were, even without makeup (which she had taken off an hour ago because the two had planned on going to sleep soon after watching the movie). She was wearing pink pants with white bunnies on them, and a maroon t-shirt; just casual clothes. Although, Brooke could wear anything and still look gorgeous. The embarrassing heat returned to Chloe’s face, and she whisked her head back to the movie, trying not to distract Brooke from her trance.

Fuck.

She was in deep shit, and she had no idea what to do about it. She needed someone who had been in, or still is in, her unfortunate situation.

Like… Michael. Michael had been head over heels for Jeremy for years, and everyone knew it (well, everyone except Jeremy himself. Which was infuriating in its own way). Who better to help her than Michael?

Chloe took another look at Brooke, only to find that her eyes had fluttered shut and she was in a peaceful sleep.

She could always message Michael tomorrow.

Chloe turned the movie on mute and tried to get as comfortable as she could without disturbing Brooke. She slid her arm around Brooke’s shoulders, then adjusted the covers. Chloe watched the silent movie for an hour before finally dozing off. She fell asleep with her head and heart full of Brooke.

* * *

 

“No”

“What do you mean ‘no’?” Chloe asked, offended, mini plastic teapot still in hand.

“I don’t wanna play tea party” Brooke whined sliding down in her small chair.

“Too bad!” Cloe poured her new friend some imaginary tea and glanced at the tiny table and chairs.

“But why can’t we do something fun? Like play with these animals” Brooke picked up a fake tiger for emphasis.

“Put him down! And no, we already did that. Now we’re playing tea party” Chloe scolded, grabbing a cookie and handing it to Brooke. Brooke perked up when she saw the cookie.

“There’s food?”

“Um, yeah? Duh, who has a tea party without food?” Chloe asked, putting a cookie on her own little plate.

“Oh, now I want to play tea party!”

“Good. Now sit in your chair” Brooke obeyed, and Chloe took a seat next to her.

“So, now what?” Brooke asked, eating some of her cookies.

“Now we… Talk about stuff. Like how our day was and these cookies and stuff” Chloe explained.

“Oh, I see… So it’s like we’re married”

Seven-year-olds don’t know lots of things. Like when to blush and why two girls being married was unheard of at that time.

“Like Georgie and Neal?” Chloe asked, referring to the two children in their grade who had an official second-grade wedding.

“Yup, just like them. Well, except we’ll be two girls”

“But I don’t want to get married, I don’t have enough friends to help out” Chloe murmured.

“Then we don’t have to get married I guess” Brooke shrugged, the topic already boring her. She reached for another cookie and put it on her plate.

“Not now, anyway”

Brooke looked up, slightly surprised at the comment.

“No, not now… We’ll get married later then”

Chloe smiled at her friend and nodded, blissfully unaware of what that promise meant. Because second-grade marriage is having kids gather around you and your spouse to be, holding dandelion bouquets and Ring Pops for rings. Someone hums the Here Comes the Bride theme, and you and your spouse fake kiss. Then everyone imitates fireworks being set off, then the wedding is over. A second-grade marriage is a rosy and simple thing, one that doesn’t last forever and everyone forgets about, but it’s fun all the same. It doesn’t mean anything, and there aren’t any rules. It doesn’t matter who you’re marrying, as long as you have two Ring Pops. Chloe couldn’t think of anything wrong with getting second-grade-married to Brooke. And maybe instead of fake kissing, they could real kiss.

“Definitely. Now stop with the cookies! You need to drink some tea before you keep eating them!”

Brooke laughed and jumped up, taking her cookie with her. This lead to a chase around the house Chloe screaming at Brooke to give it back, and Brooke just screaming.

During the chase, both girls had forgotten their previous promise, but it stayed stored in the back of their minds for another day.

Yes, seven-year-olds forget many things, and simply don’t care or know about others, but when best friends forever make a promise, they stick to it.


	2. Love They Say

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No one knows what the fuck just happened at all times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So I just want to thank all of you so much for your comments, like guys, all of you are amazing.  
> I apologize in advance because once again, 200 words into this I lost all my confidence so I'm sorry if it's terrible. It's a little all over the place, but whatever.  
> Oh by the way, the two chapter titles are Tegan and Sara songs (I love them so much you guys) that you should totally listen to. The title of the story is something my mom said in a completely unrelated context that I thought sounded cool.  
> Let me know in the comments if you listen to the two songs, Drove Me Wild and Love They Say, and tell me what you think!  
> Okay go read now!

Chloe, Brooke, Jeremy, and Jake were all gathered around a plate in the cafeteria.

“What am I looking at here?” Brooke finally asked, leaning over the table to look at the circular object in the dish.

“It’s a cookie cake” Jake explained simply as if that would clear up all the questions the three teens had.

“A what? I don’t understand” Chloe asked, poking the plastic top of the dish with her nail.

“What part don’t you understand?”

“The words, I don’t understand the words”

“It’s basically a giant cookie with frosting on it” Jake shrugged, not sure of the product he had bought.

“I didn’t know that was a thing” Jeremy commented, looking at the cookie cake.

The large cookie was covered in blue, purple, and pink frosting, and had “I really like you, want to go out?” written in the same colors on top of it.

“It looks good…” Chloe murmured, reaching to take off the plastic lid when Jake slapped her hand away. She pulled her hand back, looking scandalized.

“No! It’s for Rich!” Jake shouted, glaring at the girl.

“You hit me!”

“You hit her!” Brooke and Chloe shouted at the same time, causing Jeremy and Jake to share quick knowing looks.

“Listen, I’ve never heard of these things either, but Rich really likes them so I bought one” Jake explained, pulling the plastic tray closer to him.

“Hitting Chloe is not cool, but that’s actually really sweet” Brooke frowned, but it slowly grew into a smile.

“Yeah, I agree. We should all get the person we like cakes or whatever to confess our feelings” Chloe announced, embarrassingly planning her cake to Brooke.

“Oh! Michael’s mom can bake them! She’s really good and I’m sure she wouldn’t mind”

“Well, what if she tells Michael you’re giving him a gay feelings confession cake, Jeremy?” Chloe folded her arms and drummed her fingers on her arm.

Jeremy frowned and shook his head. “No, she wouldn’t tell him. She would want someone to film his reaction though”

“I really want to meet the famed Mrs. Mell because honestly, me too” Chloe chuckled, unfolding her arms and moving them to her waist.

Jeremy rolled his eyes but was smiling all the same.

“But what if two people get each other cakes?” Brooke pointed out, referring to the four people that were not included in the meeting (Rich for obvious reasons, the other three simply because they didn’t realize a meeting was in session).

“Well that’d be adorable” Chloe couldn’t help but imagine a scenario where Brooke and each other both got each other Confession Cakes (trademarked). It would be glorious. Unfortunately, Chloe knew that wouldn’t happen, given she was convinced that Brooke didn’t return her feelings.

“Does it have to be a cake? Because Michael likes ice cream cake better, and I mean Jake got Rich a giant cookie so...”

Jeremy Heere, always asking the important questions.

“I guess not, but Confession Cakes has a ring to it” Chloe answered, wondering if and how she could confess with frozen yogurt.

“We should turn this into a business, we’d make millions!” Brooke yelled, raising her arms in excitement.

This caught the attention of Jenna and Christine, who walked over to the four teens.

“Um, what’s that?” Jenna asked immediately, pointing at the cookie cake.

“It’s a cookie with frosting on it” Brooke and Chloe both answered at the same time.

“For Rich?” Christine asked after examining the sweet.

Everyone shared a collective nod of confirmation.

“Yup, Jake and Rich are off to become the school’s biggest power couple” Chloe announced, smirking.

“He might not say yes! Shut up!” Jake shouted, like Chloe bringing it up would jinx the situation.

“Of course he will Jake, now go get ‘em” Brooke assured, then pushed Jake in Rich’s direction.

Jake started walking over to Rich but paused briefly to give them a thumbs up and a nervous smile.

“Anyway, what’s this new business that you guys came up with?” Christine asked, bringing up what Chloe and Brooke had been yelling about.

“Confession Cakes. It’s where you can order a cake to confess your feelings to your crush or whatever. Or you can ask them out or ask them to prom or something” Chloe explained, gesturing vaguely to Jake, who was halfway across the cafeteria.

“Aw that’s such a cute idea” Christine yelled, making everyone jump.

“And Michael’s mom can make the cakes, for now, considering only four people in this group can actually bake” Chloe added, the four people being Christine, Jenna, Brooke, and Rich.

“Five, Michael can bake” Jeremy pointed out, immediately regretting it when a chorus of “aww”’s came from the girls.

“Well I’d say that’s enough to start a business, and I’d be happy to take part in it” Christine jumped up and down, clapping.

“I’m in, but I also want to run marketing and want rights to company water and vacation days and Saturdays off” Jenna listed off things on her fingers, confusing the group with more than half of her demands.

“Um, sure” Chloe nodded, pretending she knew what Jenna had just said.

“Yay! Business!” Jenna cheered, everyone else soon joining in.

Everyone broke into a separate conversation of Jeremy and how his Confession Cake to Michael would look, but Chloe didn’t participate. She was too busy planning out her own confession, whether it's on a cake or not. But the confession Chloe was planning was lovely and heartfelt, while in actuality it would be harsh, bitter, and accidentally screamed out in a hallway. But for now, Chloe was allowed to plan a honey-sweet way to tell Brooke her true feelings.

Given that her early morning texts with Michael on Sunday had gone well, and he had said positive things about her chances. That filled Chloe with a new confidence on her feelings. In all honesty, Michael was miserable. He was trapped in his situation because he didn’t know Jeremy was head over heels for him too. Michael was too scared to admit anything, and understandably so. But every time he saw Jeremy, Michael would go a little crazier (as he admitted to Chloe during a gay venting session). Chloe wouldn’t let herself be in that situation. She’d do it, she promised herself. And soon. It had to be soon, or else Brooke would go off and find another boy who will only break her heart. Chloe couldn’t bare seeing that.

* * *

 

Chloe was sitting on the couch, watching a miserable Brooke tear into a carton of chocolate ice cream. Her eyes were puffy and watery, cheeks red with tears streaming down them. She hiccupped and sobbed, shoving spoonfuls of ice cream into her mouth. After a rocky and terrible relationship, the asshole Nathan broke up with her. And even though all he did was hurt her and use her, Brooke was still a wreck after their breakup. He tore her up and Chloe was left to pick up the pieces and put her back together. Currently, she was watching her best friend sob about how she would never love again, even though she was only sixteen. Chloe was forced to listen to Brooke’s trembling voice say terrible and depressing things, all hope being sucked out of her. It was a terrifying thing to see, Brooke this upset. Chloe was hugging Brooke, letting her cry into her shoulder, while Heathers played on the TV (one of Brooke’s favorite movies). They were tucked under a few blankets, tissues surrounding them. The movie was long forgotten as Brooke took another turn for the worse, her brief break in bawling interrupted by her shrieking that no one will ever love her again before the tears flooded their way back.

“No! That’s not true! Who wouldn’t love you? You’re sweet, funny, cute, and really pretty.” Chloe assured, rubbing the heartbroken girl’s back.

Brooke paused at that, and she pulled away to look at Chloe. “You really think so?” she sniffled.

“I know so” Chloe murmured, her voice dropping.

She cupped Brooke’s cheek in her hand and brushed a few strands of blonde hair out of Brooke’s face. A thin dusting of pink that wasn’t from crying dusted over Brooke’s face and a matching one breezed over Chloe’s. It was strange. Maybe it was the crying, the sheer torture of having to watch Brooke suffer, the ice cream, or all of it, but Chloe really wanted to kiss Brooke. Really, really wanted to. But Chloe pulled away before she could, brushing some more hairs from Brooke’s face before turning back to the movie.

“Uh, they just killed Kurt and Ram,” She said, trying to sound as casual as one going through a crisis could sound.

“Oh, I love this part” Brooke sniffed, then turned back to the TV. She glanced at Chloe, then rested her head on the taller girl’s shoulder. Brooke stopped crying soon after that, paying attention to the movie while cuddled into Chloe’s side. She still ate ice cream and sniffled from time to time, but she felt significantly better, especially after Chloe’s compliments. Meanwhile, Chloe was evaluating herself from the inside out, trying to find out what the fuck just happened. But at least Brooke had stopped crying, that was what really mattered.

* * *

 

Michael, Rich, Jake, and Jeremy stood in the middle of the hallway, staring at the scattered pieces of a years long friendship.

No one really knew how the fight started, but it spiraled quickly into a geyser of feelings and penned up emotions. The shouting was still rolling in the audience’s minds as if the harsh words were still bouncing around the walls. All anyone knew was that after school on a Thursday Chloe Valentine and Brooke Lohst were in a pleasant conversation, then someone said something and that conversation transformed into an ugly argument. Then everyone’s full attention was on the two screaming girls. A single sentence stood out from the rest of the argument, which was mainly insults and long lost emotions. Somewhere after “you can be so dense, Brooke! You just ignore my feelings, what do I have to do to get you to realize how I feel!?” and after Brooke’s reply of “well how do you feel? Because the only feeling I’m getting here is that I’m not good enough for you!” and a moment to sob, came a shout of “I love you, damn it!” That was the end of the argument. Chloe watched her world fall apart before her, then ran the complete opposite direction of the shocked Brooke. Brooke stood in the hallway, everything hitting her at once, then she turned around and walked solemnly out the back doors, shoulders still shaking and tears dripping onto the floor under her.

And then there were four boys, trying to make sense of the shards of the relationship left in the hallway.

“Wow, so that just happened” Jake announced. The few students left were packing up their things and leaving, the argument being over.

“I thought they were going to stay together forever and ever” Rich murmured, glancing around the hallway like he was dreaming all of this.

“Yeah, but instead they just imploded right before our eyes” Michael nodded, still shaken by the previous events.

That was most certainly not how the confession was planned to go.

“Do you think they’ll make up?” Jeremy finally spoke, voice quiet.

“Psh, I’m sure they will. They’re Chloe and Brooke!” Michael said, throwing an arm around Jeremy’s shoulders (in a completely straight way) to try to reassure him.

“They had a pretty big fight in seventh grade, but they haven’t ever had a fight like this…” Jake noted, trailing off as he realized none of them had addressed the obvious. Chloe’s confession.

Everyone knew except Brooke, but everyone was equally surprised that Chloe had screamed it out like that. Certainly not what they were expecting. The word would spread fast, and everyone would soon know about the argument and one of the most popular girl in school’s secret feelings for her best friend. But unlike the two girls in the fight, no one would lose a minute of sleep over it, whereas the girls would lay awake, crying and wondering what to do.

“They’ll get back together, one way or another” Michael said again, more to himself than to anyone else. “They have to”

* * *

 

Chloe had fucked up. Really, there was no other way to describe it. How could she be so stupid? Chloe had it all planned out, then she had to open her big mouth and it all went to shit. Now Brooke probably hated her, and would definitely never become friends with her again. So she surrounded herself in pity and locked herself in her room. She got to stay home from school the next day, so she was able to stay up all night, crying and angrily eating ice cream. She was angry at herself, at the world, at everything.

Except for Brooke of course.

The next day, Chloe ignored all texts and messages and instead spent the day drowning herself in her misery. She didn’t answer calls, and the only reason she ever went on her phone was to scroll through Instagram or play Candy Crush (neither activities gave her much joy). The day flew by, each minute blurring into an hour, then another, then another. Chloe spent the day wrapped up in blankets on her bed, listening to music and watching youtube with her curtains drawn, crying and playing games on her phone occasionally. She didn’t eat, she didn’t drink, she just sat in bed being miserable. It was quite the shock to Chloe when her mom came upstairs to announce that someone was at the door for her. This was a shock to Chloe, mainly because she swore she had another three hours before school got out.

Despite her confusion, Chloe wrapped a blanket around herself (given she was only wearing sweatpants and a tank top), and shuffled down the stairs to greet the person at the door. Brooke was standing in the doorway, smiling with puffy eyes and a thrown-together-at-the-last-minute outfit. That made two of them.

“Hey,” Brooke said, smiling shyly and taking a few more steps towards Chloe.

“Hey” Chloe echoed, her voice coming out thin and raspy.

A wave of awkward silence rolled in, both girls trying to find the correct way to apologize, searching for the right thing to say.

“Nice outfit” Brooke commented, a light, joking tone to her voice that thinned the tension between the two girls.

“Ha, thanks, yours is pretty great too” Neither brought up what had happened or what they should do about it, mainly because neither knew what to bring up first. “Um, want to go up to my room?” Chloe asked, twisting her finger in a section of the blanket that had become her cloak.

“Sure” Brooke agreed, and the two walked up the familiar steps.

The second Brooke got into Chloe’s room, she pulled back the dark curtains and opened up a window, bathing Chloe’s previously dark and sealed-off room in light and fresh air. Brooke sat on Chloe’s bed, where Chloe was seated as well. A few moments of more uncomfortable silence passed before Brooke spoke up.

“I’m sorry”

It was quiet and soft, and Chloe barely heard it.

“You have nothing to be sorry for, the entire fight was my fault. I overreacted and I was already having a bad day. But I still shouldn’t have taken that out on you” Chloe countered, speaking louder as if the volume of her voice would increase the sincerity of her words.

“You’re forgiven” Brooke smiled gently, scooting closer to Chloe. “But really, I shouldn’t have brought up Nathan in the first place. I know how you feel about him, and I know you’re right. It’s just, I always like to see the best in people, y’know?”

Chloe didn’t know because she had a keen sense for sniffing out people’s flaws over their better traits. And that included herself.

“I guess, but still, it wasn’t right of me to snap at you like that” Chloe refused to let Brooke turn this on herself, given that it was certainly Chloe’s fault.

Although Brooke disagreed, Chloe was always the more stubborn of the two.

“It’s okay, I understand, honestly I was just being overdramatic yesterday, and overly sensitive. I know it’s hard for you to express your anger in normal and less violent ways, so I really shouldn’t have made it worse by being so dramatic over it” Brooke nodded, taking a few scoots to be even closer to Chloe.

“I know I have issues, and I should really get better at expressing my anger in ways that don’t involve hurting someone. I’m sorry you have had to deal with that for this long, I really shouldn’t take my anger out on you, it’s wrong and you really don’t deserve it” Chloe’s voice lowered, as the two dove deeper into apologies. Brooke started to say sorry again, but Chloe cut her off. “I was really just so full of… Everything. There’s been a lot of shit going on, and I didn’t know what to do with it. It was a stupid argument, and I shouldn’t have gotten so distracted by it. I should have stopped when I could have. And trust me, do I regret it. I spent the whole day today laying in a pool of self-hatred for hurting you like that. I feel awful. So please forgive me” Chloe reached over and grabbed Brooke’s hands. Even with her latest confession, holding Brooke’s hand just seemed like something she should do.

“I forgive you. You know I could never be mad at you for long” Brooke squeezed Chloe’s hands, her smile growing wider.

“Okay, okay good”

“Do you forgive me?”

Chloe thought about asking what there was to forgive her of, but she decided against it. “Of course I forgive you Brooke”

Brooke just nodded and looked towards the open window. A breeze was wafting in, calmly pushing the two girls’ hair. The room was starting to smell like the soft spring air outside, sunlight finally pouring into the room that had not seen it for days. The tension was out of the air now, the silence now something that was comfortable and even welcomed.

“So… You said you loved me” Brooke finally addressed the rainbow elephant in the room, bringing a screeching halt to Chloe’s calm mood.

“I, um, did say that, yeah”

“Did you mean it?” the sincerity in Brooke’s voice was paired with a vulnerability that made Chloe’s heart break a little.

She had meant it, more than she ever meant anything. But still, that fact that her answer had so much of an effect on Brooke made her heart cry a little, that Brooke had offered one of the most sensitive parts of her to Chloe, and was begging her not to break it.

“I do mean it, yeah” Chloe offered a shy, sincere, smile as if just to prove her statement. Her face was hot and flushed, and her heart felt ready to jump out of her chest.

“Oh my God”

“What?” Chloe immediately became worried, her heart dropping. Oh God, this was a cruel joke, wasn’t it? Brooke didn’t mean it. Brooke was disgusted. Their friendship was over.

“I’ve um, I’ve actually really liked you for a long time… _Really_ liked you” Brooke finally admitted, her cheeks rosy, and her eyes sparkling.

“Really?”

“Really”

Chloe wasn’t really sure what to do next. In her confession fantasies, she always kissed Brooke, who happily kissed back. But this was completely different. Just because they admitted their feelings doesn’t mean Brooke wants a kiss at this particular moment.

Brooke cut off the rest of Chloe’s thoughts when she leaped forward and kissed Chloe, right on the lips. Chloe kissed back, moving her arm to Brooke’s waist and pulling her closer. The kiss was short, but sweet, in true first kiss fashion.

“I love you” Chloe breathed as soon as they broke apart. It had been screamed in a hallway, it had been whispered when Brooke was asleep next to her, it had been a recurring thought that had plagued Chloe for months (even years now that she thought about it).

“I love you too” Brooke grinned, giving another quick peck to Chloe’s lips.

Chloe smiled, taking a moment to admire the moment, to admire the situation, and how everything had turned out.

“So, are we dating now?” Brooke asked, reaching an arm over to Chloe’s hair, twirling a strand around her finger.

“Of course, we can’t let Rich and Jake be the most popular couple in school, can we?”

“Of course” Chloe was still staring at Brooke, being able to now without it being awkward, purely infatuated with the girl in front of her. “I love you so fucking much” she whispered, resting her forehead on Brooke’s.

Brooke giggled, kissing Chloe’s nose. “I love you so much too, no matter how many times you get mad, no matter how many times you snap at me, and I always will”

“Brooke, I’m about to cry, can we maybe do something that won’t end with me humiliating myself?”

“I suppose”

“Good. Pinkberry?”

Brooke nodded, standing up and pulling Chloe up with her. “Duh”

The two girls walked out of the bedroom, the sun and breeze still filtering into Chloe’s bedroom. 

* * *

 

Chloe was sitting at lunch, eating her sandwich and watching Christine rap Guns and Ships (she was good), and Brooke trying to keep up with her. Chloe smiled down at her sandwich, remembering the promise she and Brooke had made so many years ago in the very same bedroom where they kissed. Where they had tea parties, watched movies, cried together, gossiped, did each other’s makeup, and promised they’d get married one day. While that promise didn’t include kissing and dating and doing everything included in dating, those were lovely additions. Maybe the wedding wouldn’t have dandelion bouquets or Ring Pops, but maybe that was for the better. Chloe glanced again at Brooke and smiled, adoration seeping into her smile and her eyes.

She really did love that girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi, so, sorry if that was terrible. I tried.  
> Second fanfic finished in two weeks, yay!  
> Well whether it was horrible or not, I still have more stuff planned, so stick around!  
> In case it matter to you, the next thing I write will be a giant one shot, so it might take two weeks to publish instead of the normal one week. Just a heads up in case you guys have been following my schedule.  
> Oh and if any of you guys are into Book of Mormon or Heathers I'm planning something for those fandoms too, so keep an eye out for those!  
> If any of you guys want to talk, @Burgundy-Burgers is my Tumblr, but I don't check that very often so I apologize if it takes me forever to respond.  
> Okay I'm done.

**Author's Note:**

> So, how was that? It's my first time writing for Pinkberry so idk if it's any good or not. It'd mean a lot to me if you guys comment and leave kudos (I like attention, sorry ;-;)  
> And next chapter will be out Friday June sixteenth (hopefully)!


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